1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a card reader extender which is adapted to be positioned over an existing credit card reader and which has slots therein on either side of the card reader that are adapted to register and be aligned with a slot in the card reader thereby to provide a longer, more stable line or path of guided travel through a magnetic or optical credit card reader whereby card reading errors and the need for manual card number entries are minimized if not altogether overcome
2. Description of the related art including information disclosed under 37 CFR Sections 1.97-1.99.
Any electronic cash register or card reading device such as, for example, the electronic cash register manufactured and sold by Koppens/Schlumberger under the trademark "MICRO-MAX" typically is fitted with a card reader sold under the trademark "MAGTEK" or other card reader which typically has a length less than twice the length of a credit card with a slot extending downwardly and longitudinally through the reader for receiving a credit card having a length of approximately 3.25 inches and a height or width of approximately 2 inches.
Typically, when the credit card is inserted in the reader, only about one-half of the card is engaged in the slot when the card first contacts a card reader element. This partial engagement situation inhibits a correct read of the card especially when the card is inserted by a new operator or by an experienced operator who is hurried, e.g., such as when there is a line of customers at the register. When there is a misread, a manual entry of the credit card number is required. Such manual entries create a time loss and a potential for theft, entry of wrong account numbers, and rejected sales due to entry of wrong account numbers.
As will be described in greater detail hereinafter, the credit card reader extender of the present invention provides a longer guide for the credit card through the card reader element thereby providing a longer, more stable path-of-travel which ensures proper presentation of the credit card to the card reader element.
As a result, it is believed that the credit card reader extender of the present invention will reduce the incidents of credit card misreads attributable to the operator who inserts the credit card improperly and thus will reduce potential fraud, will increase timeliness in processing credit card purchases and will avoid errors which can occur in manually keyed-in account numbers and result in rejected sales or billing errors.
Heretofore, various magnetic and optical card and tape readers have been proposed Examples of such readers are disclosed in the following patents:
______________________________________ U.S. PAT. NO. PATENTEE ______________________________________ 2,900,451 Havstad 3,612,832 Goldstein et al. 4,258,253 Fisher 4,585,929 Brown et al. 4,587,571 Anderson et al. 4,599,511 Stiller 4,743,746 Murschall et al. 4,788,420 Chang et al. ______________________________________
The Havstad U.S. Pat. No. 2,900,451 discloses a tape reader head for a typical card reader. The card reader extender of the present invention is designed to fit over a card reader of the type disclosed in this patent to provide a longer and straighter credit card travel path.
The Goldstein et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,612,832 discloses an embossed card reader for reading embossed account numbers and does not teach a card reader extender for enhancing the reading of magnetically or optically encoded credit cards.
The Fisher U.S. Pat. No. 4,258,253 and the Murschall et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,743,746 are directed to smart card readers. The smart card reader in the `746` patent has electronic circuits inside the card which the card reader will make electrical contact with and the `253` patent discloses a security card reader for reading coded information on a card. Neither of these patents teach or suggest a credit card reader extender.
The Brown et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,585,929 discloses a card reader for reading a magnetic strip on a card and includes a modular element with notched portions for card entry. The magnetic strip card enters through the top through a notch formed by the joining of two notched elements and passes along a guide path formed by two guide elements. This patent does not disclose a card reader extender such as the card reader extender of the present invention which is received over an existing card reader whereby cards can be read with fewer passes of the card through the reader.
The Anderson et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,587,571 is a motorized card reader. In contradistinction, the card reader extender of the present invention assists in the reading of cards by extending the front and back approach guidance of a credit card to and through a manual card reader.
The Stiller U.S. Pat. No. 4,599,511 discloses a security badge reader and is more akin to the card readers disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,743,746 and 4,258,253.
The Chang et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,788,420 discloses a card reader which provides a long slot for receiving a credit card. However, this patent does rot disclose a credit card reader extender for mounting over and for use with an existing credit card reader having a short card travel path.